Prosciutto in danger

Italy’s army to kill 1 million wild boar

(Bild: P. Huber)

Italy wants to have one million wild boars killed in the next few years - even the army is to be deployed for this purpose. The cloven-hoofed animals are said to endanger the production of Prosciutto di Parma as disease carriers.

Wild boars are a real plague in Italy - because the population has increased significantly in recent years, the animals are also invading cities, terrorizing some of their inhabitants and causing traffic accidents. However, the high population also encourages the spread of diseases. This is why the Ministry of Agriculture in Rome wants to call for action against the wild animals.

Canada stops importing Parma ham
According to the ministry's plans, the population is to be reduced by 60 to 80 percent over the next three to five years. This is intended to curb the spread of African swine fever. This also affects livestock farming for the world-famous Parma ham. Canada recently stopped imports of the Italian delicacy for fear of the animal disease that is rampant in Italy.

Population quintupled in three decades
According to ISPRA (Higher Institute for Environmental Protection and Research), there are at least 1.5 million wild boars in Italy. In the last 30 years, their number is said to have increased fivefold, as the authority alerted.

In this article you can see wild boars roaming through the city of Sassari in Sardinia:

In their search for food, they do not stop at urban areas and rummage through garbage cans. Even tourists on the beach have been attacked by the cloven-hoofed animals. Because they also pose a risk to road safety, the animals can even be shot in protected areas and urban centers.